Félix Manuaku Waku

Félix Manuaku Waku (born 19 August 1954) is a Congolese guitarist, composer, singer, producer and bandleader. He is regarded as one of the most influential figures in Congolese rumba and modern African guitar playing. Also known under the name Pépé Felly, he was the first lead guitarist of Zaïko Langa Langa, where he introduced a radical shift in guitar technique and rhythm in the early 1970s. His percussive guitar style, departing from the melodic solos of earlier generations, contributed to the emergence of the third school of Congolese rumba, with his innovations shaping the sebene structure that became the hallmark of modern Congolese rumba and soukous.

He composed several of the band's breakout hits, including "Yudasi", "Obi", and "Femme Ne Pleure Pas", and was the first Congolese musician to play a double-neck guitar, as well as one of the earliest to incorporate distortion pedals and synthesizers into Congolese music. While serving in Zaire's national orchestra, he co-founded the band Les Ya Toupas with Ray Lema and Bopol Mansiamina. In 1980, after internal conflicts, he left Zaïko Langa Langa and founded Grand Zaïko Wawa, which became a hub for experimentation and helped launch the careers of artists such as Général Defao and Shimita El Diego. The band earned acclaim with hits including "Molunge Na Ndako", "Sonia", and "Menace de Divorce".

After relocating to Switzerland in 1989, he pursued a solo career and engaged in international collaborations, including with American saxophonist Robin Kenyatta and reggae artist Jimmy Cliff. He later took part in the reunion project Le Quatre de Langa-Langa with Papa Wemba, Bozi Boziana, Evoloko Jocker, and Gina Efonge, and released the album Kongo Alchimie in 1996. In 2009, he opened Le Griot, a music school in Kinshasa, where he worked as an educator and mentor. In 2014, he founded New Zaïko and released Les grands classiques de la musique congolaise, containing reinterpretations of Congolese rumba. In 2018, he became musical director of the Elikya band. Manuaku has been noted for his contributions as a guitarist and mentor, and his work has been studied at institutions including the National Institute of Arts (INA) in Kinshasa and the University of Limerick in Ireland.